Leadership in a Post-Truth World
Speaker(s): Marc Levitt, Nona Mamulashvili, Jason Yip, Alejandro T Reyes
Enquiry: T: +852 3917 1297 | E: agimail@hku.hk
Abstract
Watch the replay here.
Key takeaways:
- Though ‘truth decay’ is not a new phenomenon, the challenge of recent years has been the proliferation of ideas of mass deception made more severe by inequality and the rise of populist and nationalist administrations.
- For the US, the confluence of economic inequality, the 2008 Global Financial Crisis and the rise of under-regulated social media platforms have fostered fear and mistrust in vulnerable communities.
- Having had to combat fake news and Soviet propaganda, Caucasus countries such as Georgia have learned that the most important tools for building trust are strong democratic institutions.
- To the extent that countries can collaborate and develop solutions for the post-pandemic global economy, trust can be restored among populations and end the cycle of ‘truth decay’.
- Greater education among all groups of society is the long-term solution to fake news, but in the short-term states must work together to shut down malign actors spreading disinformation.
About the Speaker(s)
Marc Levitt
2017 AsiaGlobal Fellow, Asia Global Institute
Marc Levitt is a 2017 AsiaGlobal Fellow. Marc Levitt is a current Visiting Assistant Professor at National Chengchi University and the Co-Founder and Partner of Zeitgeist Strategies.
View ProfileAlejandro T Reyes
Director of Knowledge Dissemination, Asia Global Institute
View ProfileNotes
Good leadership is crucial to building trust in a society. This means competent governance, effective policymaking, and informed, honest and sensible judgement. The advent of rapid-fire communications, rushed news cycles and pervasive social media have ushered in what has been called a "post-truth” world, with money politics, tribalism, increasing inequality, and the rise of populist movements leading to a severe breakdown in civility, community and the capacity for reform. The deadly and destructive invasion of the US Capitol by rioters was the latest example of the dire consequences of a crisis of confidence. In this webinar, AsiaGlobal Fellows will discuss the global trust deficit and the challenge that leaders face in a time of truth decay – What does good leadership mean when the spread of fake news, conspiracy theories, alternative facts and outright lies breeds suspicion, cynicism, irrationality and even violence?